This invention relates to support apparel such as back supports, wrist supports and the like, and to systems for designing and testing such apparel.
It is well known that the lifting of heavy objects can result in back injuries. Such injuries are even more likely to occur when the muscles supporting the back become fatigued, as can occur to truck drivers and the like as a result of the vibratory motion of the vehicle. In those circumstances, even the lifting of a light object can cause injury to the back. It should also be appreciated that other workers also require back support while performing their regular tasks. For example, fire fighters and construction workers, as well as laboratory workers, barbers and hairdressers, could use additional back support in performing their daily jobs. Many of these workers are required to (or choose to) wear certain items (hereinafter generically referred to as garments) which might interfere with the wearing of a support device such as a belt. For example, fire fighters, laboratory technicians, doctors, nurses, barbers and hairdressers often wear coats or jackets while performing their jobs. Likewise, construction workers conventionally wear tool belts, reflective vests, and the like. Conventional back supports are not always readily useable with these items of apparel.
Back supports have been provided to protect a person's back from injury. One such back support is sold by Chase Ergonomics under the trade designation Lumbar Lock. This back support includes a support belt which removably wraps around the lower abdomen or pelvis of a user and suspender-like shoulder straps which help prevent the support belt from sliding down during use. A pair of cinch straps are disposed over the support belt (which contains sewn in orthopedic boning stays) and are removably fastened together over the support belt. The support belt in combination with the cinch straps provide the desired back support. During non-active periods, wearers often loosen support tension or unclasp support belts completely, a practice generally encouraged by manufacturers of these devices. Many manufacturers of support belts simply recommend wearing support belts about the waist.
Various approaches have been taken in the past to improve upon support apparel such as back supports. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,548,843 to Chase et al. discloses an improved back support. That particular support discloses a back support with numerous adjustments including the use of a beaded pad (best shown in FIGS. 4 and 5) disposed at an adjustable position in the small of the back of the human wearer (see, e.g., pad 3 in FIG. 2).
It has been discovered, however, that the support of the '843 patent to Chase et al. can be improved. It appears that many back injuries, for example, are caused by the application of sudden, unexpected loads. The back apparently overcompensates for these loads and, in effect, injures itself. Back supports in general appear to reduce the possibility or severity of such injuries, but it has been discovered that they can be improved.
For example, the inventors of the present invention have discovered that currently available back supports are almost uniformly worn incorrectly—i.e. (at the user's waist or higher), a position that has been discovered to be less than optimal in reducing and eliminating injury. Moreover, it has been found that currently available back supports do not apply forces to the human torso in the optimal manner to reduce or eliminate back injuries.
More generally, presently available support apparel heretofore have been designed and tested using somewhat hit-or-miss methods. As a result, the efficacy of such apparel has varied, apparently inexplicably. It would be a major improvement to have a systematic method or system for designing such support apparel.